


out of the in-between

by modesto



Category: Naruto
Genre: Edo Tensei, Family Bonding, Father-Son Relationship, Gen, Light Angst, Orochimaru violates his parole, Sort Of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-18
Updated: 2018-11-18
Packaged: 2019-08-25 07:48:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16657129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/modesto/pseuds/modesto
Summary: To say that Kakashi had expected this would be an understatement. From the moment he had decided to let Orochimaru and Kabuto return to Konoha, he knew that something like this was bound to happen. This, however, was beyond what he expected the two of them to carry out. Sakumo Hatake, White Fang of Konoha, and Kakashi’s own father was seated at Kakashi’s kotatsu, peacefully drinking tea and inspecting his apartment.





	out of the in-between

To say that Kakashi had expected this would be an understatement. From the moment he had decided to let Orochimaru and Kabuto return to Konoha, he knew that something like this was bound to happen. Orochimaru’s experiments hadn’t magically ceased once he was granted amnesty, nor had his and Kabuto’s frankly disconcerting obsession with dead bodies. Given the amount of damage Kabuto alone had inflicted during the Fourth Shinobi War by reanimating corpses, one of the strict requirements upon his and Orochimaru’s reinstatement was that they were never to even approach the subject of reanimation jutsu in their future research. Kakashi was no fool, however, and he knew that Kabuto and Orochimaru would find loopholes and manage to shirk their probationary requirements.

This, however, was beyond what he expected the two of them to carry out. Sakumo Hatake, White Fang of Konoha, and Kakashi’s own father was seated at Kakashi’s kotatsu, peacefully drinking tea and inspecting his apartment.

“Nice place,” Sakumo observed, running his hand absentmindedly over the “#1 SENSEI” mug that had been a gift from Naruto.

“Ah, well, perks of being Hokage, I suppose,” said Kakashi.

Kakashi awkwardly seated himself across from his father, still dressed in the absurdly large and comfortable robes he wore as Hokage.

“So,” he began, “Orochimaru didn’t say how he…?” Kakashi gestured vaguely towards his father, who didn’t look a day older than when he died. The bags under his eyes, which Kakashi once thought made him look old and distinguished, were now present in both of them. It was like looking in a mirror. Kakashi absentmindedly noted that he was probably older than his father now.

“No,” said Sakumo, “but I reckon he was experimenting with the Nidaime’s reanimation jutsu. That’s the only way he could have pulled this off.” Sakumo looked down at himself, seemingly surprised to find a corporeal form again after so many years.

Kakashi hummed to himself. Yes, this was obviously some kind of reanimation jutsu, but his father lacked the characteristic dark sclera and cracked skin of Edo Tensei. There was also the small fact that he seemed very much alive. He was even drinking tea! Kakashi mentally cursed Orochimaru and Kabuto for saddling him with even more paperwork.

“He told me it's supposed to last for a day. Then he gave me your address, and you know the rest,” said Sakumo.

Kakashi did know the rest. He had come home to find his intruder seals activated and a very sheepish, very alive White Fang hanging hogtied from the rafters. After a thorough and emotional interrogation, along with some interesting information about Orochimaru violating his parole, Kakashi had determined that this was indeed his father. Sakumo had explained that he woke up in a lab with Orochimaru hovering over him. The Sannin had told him that he had 24 hours to do as he liked and suggested visiting his son. The fact that Orochimaru knew his apartment address was disconcerting, and Kakashi vowed to find a new place as soon as possible.

There was a long silence filled by the slow hum of the kotatsu’s heater.

“So. Fourth Hokage, you said?”

“Sixth,” Kakashi corrected.

Sakumo whistled. “You must be getting up there in years, then.”

Kakashi shrugged.

“Who were the Fourth and Fifth then?”

“The Fourth was Minato-sensei, and the fifth was Tsunade,” Kakashi offered.

“Minato?” Sakumo said gleefully, “I always thought it would be Kushina! She’s been after the Hokage hat since she was in the Academy.”

“Well they’re both dead now,” Kakashi snapped, then recoiled, surprised at his own harshness.

Sakumo’s face dropped. “Oh,” he murmured, “I suppose that makes sense, if you’re the Sixth…”

Another long silence. The kotatsu hummed, and steam coiled up from Sakumo’s mug.

Kakashi stared at his father’s face for almost a minute before he crumpled. He let out a harsh sob, hand reaching up to cover his eyes. Sakumo was by his side in an instant.

“Kakashi,” he said, “God, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.” He held his son in his arms as Kakashi broke down, hot tears falling freely onto his father’s sleeve.

“I shouldn’t have—” Sakumo broke off, swallowing hard and holding Kakashi tightly.

Kakashi grabbed onto his father like a lifeline. “Don’t,” he managed. “I forgave you a long time ago.”

Sakumo gritted his teeth to stop his own tears. “But you shouldn’t have had to forgive me. There shouldn’t have been anything to forgive. I’m your father, I should have been there.”

Sakumo had originally wondered what possessed Orochimaru to reanimate him, rather than someone who hadn’t died in disgrace, hated by his village and teammates. But now he was relieved, more than anything, that he had the chance to see and hold his son who clearly, despite his physical and emotional masks, was not at all as emotionally stable as he claimed to be in limbo. When Sakumo had met Kakashi in that in-between, he had been seeking the acceptance and forgiveness of his son so that he could move on to the afterlife. He hadn’t realized until now that Kakashi needed his acceptance in return.

Kakashi lifted his head, eyes red and face blotchy. He lowered his mask to wipe his nose with a tissue.

Sakumo noted the beauty mark below his lip that had failed to fade away in adulthood. When Kakashi was a child, he had resented that beauty mark for making him look “girly.” He covered it with a mask and Sakumo had assured him that it would fade as he got older.

Kakashi gently pushed his father away, composing himself. “How unbecoming of a Hokage,” he said bitterly, “to cry in the arms of his father as a 34-year-old.”

Sakumo chuckled. “So much for the rules and regulations.”

“Yeah,” said Kakashi, “although someone once told me that those who break the rules are trash, but those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash.”

The lines around Sakumo’s eyes crinkled. “Sounds like a wise man.”

Kakashi let out a harsh laugh at dumb, sentimental, powerful, vengeful Obito being called wise of all things.

“Yeah,” said Kakashi, “I guess he was.”


End file.
